Real Estate Weekly – 3/1/13

St. John Properties Inc. has completed construction of 6190 Guardian Gateway, a three-story, 75,000-square-foot, Class A office building located in the Government and Technology Enterprise (GATE) project, a 416-acre business community inside Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford County. The building, which is presently 35 percent leased, is the 10th office or research and development building completed by St. John Properties within the past 3½ years at the GATE, totaling more than 625,000 square feet of space. Two additional buildings, containing 47,000 square feet of space, are currently under construction by the company. The newly completed building was designed and constructed to meet LEED Silver certification standards of the U.S. Green Building Council.

NAIOP Maryland wins award at Washington, D.C., meeting

NAIOP Maryland captured the National Merit Award for “Special Event of the Year” at a recent NAIOP Chapter Leadership and Legislative Retreat in Washington, D.C. NAIOP Maryland was recognized for the successful execution of its Awards of Excellence program. Held every other year, the Awards of Excellence recognize developers and vendors for the highest quality and most innovative commercial real estate achievements in the Maryland area. Shown here accepting the award are, from left, Connie Rhodes, of Rhodes Development, co-chair of awards committee; Kate Sanft, associate director of NAIOP Maryland; and Nichole Wilhelm, of Heath Design Group, NAIOP Maryland programs chair.

Charter school leases space in Frederick business park

The Frederick Classical Charter School, a new institution intent on offering a well-rounded liberal arts and science curriculum to Frederick County-area students, has selected Riverside Technology Park as its inaugural location. The K-8th grade school signed a lease with St. John Properties Inc. for 28,620 square feet of space within the 490,000-square-foot business community, located between MD Route 40 and Interstate 70 on Monocacy Boulevard in Frederick. The school, which is using a random lottery system for student enrollment, plans to open in August. The school will open initially with approximately 280 students in grades K-6, with grades seven and eight added in subsequent years. Rocky Mackintosh, president of MacRo Ltd. represented the school. Danny Severn of St. John Properties represented his company in the lease negotiations.

Forrester Construction begins work on historic hotel building

Forrester Construction Co., of Rockville, said it has started work on an addition to the Morrison-Clark Inn, at 1015 L St. N.W., in Washington. Originally built in 1864 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Victorian era hotel will be expanded by 43,000 square feet, incorporating neighboring historic structures into the overall design. The new addition requires preservation of a circa 1700 carriage house, one of the oldest buildings in Washington, keeping the exterior intact while completely renovating the interior. The façades of a neighboring rectory and 1880-era townhouse will also become part of the space. The hotel addition will be six stories above ground level with 56 guest rooms featuring high-end finishes and a central courtyard that connects the buildings.

Big Screen Store, Sofa Store combine in single location

The Big Screen Store and The Sofa Store, both owned by the Luskin family, have consolidated their separate retail locations in Towson into one space. The two stores were located across the parking lot from each other atop the high hill at 1113 Cromwell Bridge Road in Towson. The Sofa Store opened last April in 50,000 square feet of space vacated by Syms three years ago, selling sofas, loveseats, chairs, ottomans and other home furnishings and accessories. The Big Screen Store occupied a 4,000-square-foot store across the parking lot, selling large-screen televisions and home theater systems. Together, the two retailers employ 20 people. Just to clear up any confusion, a spokesperson said only the stores have combined, not the businesses, which remain separate entities. Also, all other Big Screen stores — there are 14 of them in Maryland and Virginia — will keep their current retail locations.

Hogan Cos. brokers sale of 2 subdivisions

The Hogan Cos., an Annapolis-based land brokerage, announced the sale of two subdivisions in Baltimore County. The McDonogh Green and Cillian’s Crossing subdivisions closed Jan. 25 and Feb. 15, 2013, respectively. Working Jake Ermer of the Hogan Companies was the sole broker in both transactions, with home builders as purchasers. McDonogh Green, located in Randallstown, was purchased by Lennar, a national home builder. Cillian’s Crossing, located in Perry Hall, was purchased by Procopio Family Homes.

LEASES

Florida firm leases space in downtown office building

Tindale-Oliver & Associates Inc. has signed a lease for 1,500 square feet of office space at 10 S. Howard St., a 270,000-square-foot office building in downtown Baltimore, it was announced by the Baltimore office of Cassidy Turley, a national commercial real estate services provider. TOA provides infrastructure engineering, planning, and innovative financing programs for local government entities and private entities throughout the U.S. Among its range of specialties are transit planning and ADA compliance and accessibility services. The Florida-based firm, with offices across the state, currently is expanding its services to the mid-Atlantic region by conducting performance and compliance monitoring services for the Maryland Transit Administration’s multimodal public transit system through its Office of Service Oversight. Cassidy Turley Senior Vice President/Principal Matthew L. Seward represented TOA in the transaction. Transwestern represented the landlord, City Crescent LLC.

Annapolis Shakespeare Company

Annapolis Shakespeare Company takes up residence in renovated building MacKenzie Commercial Real Estate Services, of Lutherville, brokered a deal that resulted in The Annapolis Shakespeare Company leasing 2,173 square feet of space at 111 Chinquapin Round Road in Annapolis. The nonprofit theater company plans to use its new home for rehearsal space, classroom space, a costume shop, and executive office space. The 36,000-square-foot, recently renovated building, located one block off West Street at the gateway of the Annapolis Design District, features unique space with high ceilings, exposed ductwork and large bay windows. The theater company is the fourth tenant to lease space in the building, which is currently 66.5 percent occupied. About 7,000 square feet of loft/showroom space is still available, along with a variety of smaller suites. MacKenzie’s leasing team of Christopher C. Bennett, Patricia B. Farrell and J. Scott Wimbrow represented both the tenant and the landlord, The Bernstein Cos.

Three leases signed at GATE office buildings

St. John Properties Inc. announced the signing of three new leases totaling more than 6,000 square feet of space within the Government and Technology Enterprise (GATE) project, a 416-acre business community located inside Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford County. Mission 1st, a minority woman-owned small business that provides program management, mission operations, system engineering and technical assistance to a worldwide client base, leased space at 6180 Guardian Gateway. TeleCommunication Systems Inc., which is headquartered in Annapolis, agreed to lease space at 6210 Guardian Gateway. TCS provides secure mobile communication technology, including text messaging, commercial location and deployable wireless communications. Also, ViaSat, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based provider of innovative satellite and other wireless networking systems and services, will occupy space at 6165 Guardian Gateway. ViaSat was represented in the lease negotiations by David Fritz of NAI KLNB.

Busboys and Poets signs for space at Takoma Central

Federal Capital Partners, of Chevy Chase, and Level 2 Development, of Washington, have signed Busboys and Poets, a popular and fast-growing restaurant/bookstore/market concept, to a 6,500-square-foot lease at Takoma Central in the Takoma neighborhood of Northwest Washington. B&P will occupy a large portion of the 9,000-square-foot retail ground floor of the $36 million, mixed-use development at the corner of Carroll and Maple streets. The development will feature 150 rental apartments adjacent to the Takoma Metrorail station on Washington’s Red Line. This will be B&P’s fourth location in the D.C. metro area. The Takoma Central store is expected to open in late 2014, soon after completion of the building.